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When we listen to
a musical work we are some what in a position of the traveller
in a train who watches the landscape speed past his window. He
carries away only a general impression. With each additional
trip through the same territory, the details emerge from the
mass and engrave themselves from upon his mind - a house here, a
clump there until the terrain has become a clear and familiar
pattern.
So too our first hearing of a work is apt to leave us at best
with a hazy image. As we become familiar with the piece, we grow
increasingly aware of what is in it. First to engage our
attention, of course, is the melody. For melody is the most
directly appealing element of music. The melody is what we sing
and hum and whistle, what we associate most directly said Haydn
a century and a half ago, “and it is that which is most
difficult to produce. The invention of a fine melody is a work
of genius”. |
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 THE BASIC
ELEMENTS
The melody is the musical line that guides our ear throughout
the composition. It is the basic idea of the piece, the theme is
much the same way that war or passion is the theme of a novel.
It will be stated either at the outset or fairly early in a
composition. It may disappear from view for a time; but sooner
or later it may return, either in its original guise or in some
altered form. The melody is the thread upon which hangs the
tale, in which everything in the work is related; the link that
binds the musical action into a unity. As Aaron Copland puts it,
“the melody is generally what the piece is about”.
In painting, the line is set off against the background that
gives us perspective - the illusion of depth. Similarly, the
melody in music, the melody line does not exist alone. We hear
melody against the background of harmony that supports and
shades it, lending it richness, colour and weight. Harmony is
the element of depth in music - the third dimension.
Melody and harmony are not separate entities. Both are parts of
the same musical process. When the singer accompanies himself
with chords on the banjo or when the pianist's left hand plays
the chords that support the right hand part, our attention is
fastened on the melody. We are not conscious of the chords as
such.
However, let the player but strike a wrong chord and we
instantly notice. All of a sudden, the unity of the musical
process has been broken, the link between melody and harmony has
snapped with a most jarring effect upon us.
Melody and harmony are not stationery. They flow through time
which brings us to the other basic element of music - rhythm.
The word rhythm in Greek means flow. Rhythm denotes the orderly
movement of music in tunes, their organization into intelligible
patterns. Rhythm is the element of music most closely allied to
body movement and dance. A rhythmic pattern, repeated over and
over again, can have an effect upon us which is a little short
of hypnotic. Rhythm is the hearbeat of music, the pulse that
betokens life. When we say of a dance band musicians that “he's
got rhythm” we mean much more than that he keeps time. We are
implying that his playing has an electrifying quality, a sense
of aliveness almost independent of the notes. |
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 OTHER
CHARACTERISTICS
Melody, harmony and rhythm are the basic components of music. They
are by no means the only ones. As we listen to a work we become
aware of the speed of pace of the music and its degree grows
louder- of loudness or softness. We perceive too certain changes
in tempo. Now the music grows louder (crescendo), now softer
(diminuendo), here faster (accelerando), here slower (ritardando).
So too we may be intrigued by the interplay of instrumental colour.
At one point we respond to the singing beauty of the string
section of the orchestra; at another, to the powerful sonority of
the brass. At still another, we notice that a woodwind instrument
- a flute, perhaps, or a clarinet has disengaged itself from the
orchestral mass to take a solo passage.
The first law of musical form is repetition. The second is
contrast. Repetition engraves the musical material upon the
listeners mind. Contrast sustains his interest. Without repetition
there is chaos. Without contrast there is boredom. Repetition
safeguards the unity of a piece. Contrast provides the necessary
variety. Unity and variety are the twin goals of a musical form.
Whether you listen to a simple folk song, a popular dance tune or
a symphony, you will find that a certain statement is followed by
new material, after which the first statement in one form or
another reappears. As you listen again and again to a musical work
you become aware of its underlying principal; Statement Departure
Return. Each of the musical forms will follow its own pattern of
departure and return. When we learn to perceive this pattern we
become alive to the manifold possibilities of musical form.
It becomes apparent that the stream of music is composed of many
elements - melody, harmony, rhythm, tempo, dynamics, colour, form,
to name only those we have talked about. So we become better
acquainted with a given composition that is, familiar with the
musical landscape and terrain these elements take on ever greater
meaning for us. We perceive them in a new relationship. With each
rehearing of the work, the music reveals itself afresh. |
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